Business succession and exit planning
We help owners plan the transition years in advance — protecting value, reducing taxes and preserving what they built, whether the exit comes by choice or by circumstance.
Confidential planning · Coordinated with your CPA and attorney
The business is often the largest asset you'll transfer
For most owners, the business is the largest asset they will ever transfer, yet many reach the exit without a plan. Value is lost to taxes, poor timing and rushed sales.
We help you plan the transition early, bringing valuation, buy-sell funding, key-person protection and tax planning into one strategy, so the company transfers on your terms, at full value, to the people you choose.
Three costly exit mistakes
Illustrative examples of what an unplanned exit can cost, and how planning changes the outcome.
An owner dies with no succession plan
A 58-year-old owner of a $7 million manufacturer died unexpectedly. The family knew little about operations, key employees left within 60 days and major clients canceled. With no buy-sell agreement, no key-person insurance and no trained successor, value fell about 60% in six months. The family sold for about $2.8 million and faced estate tax on value that no longer existed.
Illustrative example. Real outcomes depend on the facts and your policy terms.
Our succession and exit process
Discovery and valuation
We learn your goals, timeline and family dynamics, then establish what the business is worth today, the drivers behind that number, and any gap between its value and your retirement needs.
Exit strategy design
We map the path that fits — third-party sale, family transition, management buyout, ESOP or strategic acquisition — with a timeline, milestones, a successor-development plan and steps to lift the sale price.
Structure and funding
A buy-sell agreement and its triggers, the life insurance that funds it, key-person coverage, and a tax structure (QSBS, installment sales, trusts) integrated with your estate plan.
Execution and post-exit
We coordinate the transaction with your CPA, attorney and M&A team, help optimize deal structure (earnouts, rollovers), and plan liquidity, diversification and wealth transfer afterward.
Twelve pieces of a well-planned transition
Business valuation analysis
Professional valuation establishing current market value, identifying value drivers and setting the baseline for transition and tax planning.
Financial independence analysis
The sale proceeds your retirement actually requires, the gap between business value and your needs, and how to close it.
Business enhancement strategies
Operational, financial and value-driver improvements before exit, which can add 20–40% to sale price.
Exit strategy development
A roadmap for third-party sale, family transition, management buyout, ESOP or strategic acquisition, with timeline and milestones.
Succession training program
Structured development of next-generation leaders — family or key employees — for a smooth operational handoff.
Deal structure optimization
Guidance on earnouts, seller financing, equity rollovers and employment agreements, balancing risk, tax efficiency and proceeds.
Post-exit planning
Managing proceeds, diversification, charitable giving, family wealth transfer and the next chapter.
Tax optimization planning
QSBS benefits, installment sales, charitable remainder trusts, retirement contributions and entity restructuring to reduce tax on the sale.
Estate planning integration
Coordination with estate attorneys so the transition aligns with trusts, gifting strategies and legacy goals.
Buy-sell agreement design
Agreements that set valuation methods, purchase terms, funding and triggering events to protect every owner.
Life-insurance funding
Properly structured life insurance that provides liquidity for buyouts and avoids forced sales or dissolution.
Key-person protection
Coverage on people whose loss would disrupt operations, funding recruitment, training and continuity.
How much value an unplanned exit can put at risk
Unplanned transitions commonly erode a large share of a business's value. In the illustrative patterns above, a sudden loss of the owner put roughly 60% of value at risk, a forced sale about 45%, and tax leakage about 40% of proceeds.
A funded buy-sell, a multi-year exit timeline and early tax planning aim to preserve most of that, often adding 25–40% to net proceeds compared with an unplanned exit. Actual exposure depends on your entity, structure, timing and personal circumstances.
Insurance, tax and advisors working as one plan
Insurance-integrated planning
We structure life, disability, key-person and buy-sell funding so the plan is protected and fully funded when it's needed.
Coordination with your advisors
We work alongside your CPA, attorney, financial advisor and M&A specialists so the strategy is carried out as one plan.
Business-sale tax planning
Familiarity with QSBS, IRC 1042, installment sales, charitable strategies and timing — planning that commonly preserves $1 million to $5 million or more for owners of larger businesses.
Start planning your exit
Schedule a confidential consultation about your goals, your business's value and a succession strategy.
Descriptions are general summaries for education. They are not tax, legal or investment advice, a statement of coverage, an offer or a binder. Scenarios, percentages and dollar figures are illustrative examples, not guarantees or representations about any business; actual outcomes vary by entity, structure, timing, market conditions and individual circumstances. Tax and estate strategies should be implemented with your CPA and attorney.